Theresa May has insisted she is "not a quitter" and vowed to lead the Conservatives into the next general election.

The decision to come out fighting followed reports that she was preparing to stand down the day before Britain leaves the European Union in 2019.

In a series of interviews during a visit to Japan, Mrs May set out her plan to fight on, promising to deliver social reforms that will give the country a "brighter future".

PROGRESS IN BREXIT TRADE TALKS WOULD BENEFIT BOTH SIDES, THERESA MAY INSISTS

Theresa May has urged Brussels to make progress on trade talks with Britain amid reports of a deadlock in negotiations.

The European Union wants to nail down the divorce settlement, including an exit bill, before agreeing to future trading relations.

During a visit to Japan, the Prime Minister said ''significant'' discussions were still needed to agree on Britain's obligations, indicating there were no plans to row back on the Government's Brexit strategy.

FRIENDS AND FANS TO MARK DEATH OF DIANA 20 YEARS AGO

The anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales will be marked by her friends and fans 20 years after she was killed in a car crash.

Diana's sons the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry have already paid tribute to their mother, visiting the floral tributes and pictures of the Princess left at the gates of her former home Kensington Palace.

The brothers toured the site on Wednesday and laid flowers on behalf of well-wishers who had gathered to see the royals.

FLOODED CHEMICAL PLANT POISED TO EXPLODE AS HARVEY DEATH TOLL RISES

A flooded chemical plant in a small town outside Houston is poised to explode as the scope of the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey came into sharper focus.

The death toll climbed to at least 31, and the fire department in Houston began searching thousands of flooded homes to ensure "no people were left behind".

Harvey was downgraded to a tropical depression and the floodwaters started dropping across much of the Houston area, but major dangers remained for the US Gulf Coast area.

NHS trusts were almost £3 billion deeper in the red at the end of last year than was reported in their official accounts, according to new figures.

Nuffield Trust analysis of accounts and financial data published by NHS regulators found an underlying overspend of #3.7 billion at the end of 2016/17, compared to the #791 million reported by the regulators.

The health charity said the reported figure had been ''flattered by billions of pounds' worth of one-off savings, temporary extra funding and accountancy changes that did nothing to improve the underlying state of provider finances''.

DONALD TRUMP AND NUCLEAR WAR AMONG BIGGEST THREATS TO HUMANITY SAY NOBEL WINNERS

Nobel Prize winners consider nuclear war and US President Donald Trump as among the gravest threats to humanity, a survey has found.

More than a third (34%) said environmental issues including over-population and climate change posed the greatest risk to mankind, according to the poll by Times Higher Education and Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings.

But amid rising tensions between the US and North Korea, almost a quarter (23%) said nuclear war was the most serious threat.

Manish Shah, from east London, was charged with 65 counts of assault by penetration and 52 of sexual assault on August 2, Scotland Yard said.

The 47-year-old, who is on bail, was also charged with one count of sexual assault on a child under the age of 13.

SOCIAL CARE SYSTEM 'NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE' SAY NINE OUT OF 10 MPS - SURVEY

Nine in 10 Members of Parliament do not believe the social care system is fit for purpose, a new poll suggests.

A survey of 101 English MPs found that only 10% believe the current social care system is suitable for the UK's ageing population.

The research, carried out by older people's charity Independent Age, also showed just 13% of Labour MPs and 35% of Conservative MPs believe that social care services in their constituencies are fit for purpose.

INSTAGRAM CLOSES SECURITY BUG AFTER SELENA GOMEZ HACK

Instagram has admitted a bug in its system allowed access to high-profile users' private information after celebrities including Selena Gomez suffered security breaches.

The social media firm said on Wednesday that at least one person used the since closed down flaw to gain "unlawful access" to email addresses and phone numbers in a targeted attack on famous users.

Pop singer Gomez, 25, was hacked and had nude photos of her ex-partner Justin Bieber posted to her account earlier this week.